An Open Appeal, From Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

AN OPEN APPEAL, FROM KUALA LUMPUR, ON BEHALF OF THE ROHINGYA ETHNIC COMMUNITY TO THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY FROM THE ETHNIC ROHINGYAS OF BURMA (Myanmar)

The Hon.John Howard, Australian Prime Minister Parliament House, Canberra ACT 2600 HIGHLY CONFIDENTIAL C.cs

(1) The Hon.Amanda Vanstone, Australian Immigration Minister Parliament House, Canberra ACT 2600. (2) The Hon.Gary Hardgrave MP, Minister for Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs. Parliament House, Canberra ACT 2600.

Sirs/Mdms, AN OPEN APPEAL ON BEHALF OF THE ROHINGYA ETHNIC COMMUNITY TO THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY FROM THE ETHNIC ROHINGYAS OF BURMA (Myanmar)

First and foremost, I would like to take this opportunity and privilege to express our heartiest gratitude for providing shelters and safe heavens for the Ethnic Rohingyas of Burma , in Australia, on humanitarian grounds.

Introduction There are fourteen States and Divisions in the Union Of Burma, also known as Myanmar now. Arakan State is one of the fourteen states and divisions of this pariah state and Arakan located in the Northwestern part of Burma bordering with Bangladesh and India in the north.There are a total of 136 ETHNIC minority races in Burma and the so-called majority Burmen dominates all of them since the independence of the country from the former British colonial power. There in Arakan live two sister-communities known as the Rohingyas who are predominantly Mohammedans and the Rakhaines ,the Buddhists. All other races of Burma profess either in Buddhism, Cristianity or aeithism or animism.

Rohingyas were gradually made STATELESS within their own state despite the historical records that Rohingyas exercised their VOTING-RIGHTS throughout all the National General Elections of Burma after independence. It is very ironic now to hear from the Junta that Rohingyas did not exist in Burma and they are DUBIOUS citizens of Burma. The junta has since 1990 restricted the legitimate rights to freedom of movement for the Rohingyas and they are effectively VIRTUAL PRISONERS in their own motherland; motherland it was for the Rohingyas ; the Mrohaung Dynasty which was ANNEXED by the usurpous Burmen in the year 1784.

ROHINGYAS PARTICIPATION IN THE NATION-BUILDING OF BURMA Rohingyas have been part and parcel of nation-building human resources of Burma since the preindependence time. They were excellent school teachers, engineers (under the Colombo Planning), doctors, professors, administrators, advocates, judges, dedicated police officers, soldiers, successful traders, entrepreneurs and alike. Never in the history of Burma those holding public office fail to discharge their duty but they very brilliantly gave sweat and blood for the Union of Burma. Gradual discrimination now is discouraging Rohingyas from working with the government. They cannot however disclose their ETHNIC IDENTITY in the government services, if they wish to cling to the post. Population-wide, Rohingyas themselves estimate their number to be three million who are now scattered all over the world; Bangladesh, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Thailand, Malaysia, UK, US, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Germany, France, EU, Australia, New Zealand and other countries of the world, to name a few. Depopulation rate is very high among the Rohingyas now and it is due to their lack of social security that is vital for every human race to start and maintain a secured family.

CITIZENSHIP STATUS OF ROHINGYAS Burma has been adamantly asserting that Rohingyas are not her citizens. Peculiarly Burma dares not say that which country’s bona fide citizens they are at any international forum. Day-to-day activities of the Rohingyas are restricted and Courts Martial always passes verdict of guilt for trespassing-charges to those caught trying to travel to other parts of Burma. All the existing Constitutions of Burma deliberately expunged the Rohingyas as one of the National Ethnic races and it is SILENT in any judicial contest to determine the actual status of the oppressed race of Arakan which was first occupied and ruled by the British in the year 1824 prior to the overall occupation of Burma in 1885. Honesty, trustworthiness, loyalty, competitiveness, efficiency, resourcefulness and reliability of the Rohingyas were well reported by several British then Commanders and ample documentations lies in the British Library, inter alia.

FLIGHTS OF ROHINGYAS In 1979,the Burmese government then under the leadership of (Late) Gen.Ne Win launched the Na-Ga-Min (Dragon Operation) with a view to flush out the innocent Rohingya Muslims .It resulted in more than three hundred-thousand fleeing into Bangladesh which she herself struggles for the very survival. Thus additional burdens brought by the Rohingyas did not hold water and finally our people were repatriated to Burma based on the bilateral agreement between the two governments without involving the international community such as the UNO and the like. Burmese government very cunningly took the advantage of absence of international commitment and later made a U-TURN from all the promises she made to the Bangladeshi government in return for the voluntary repatriation of the then Refugee-Rohingyas. Extra-judicial killings, detention incommunicado, increasing oppressions followed the return of our people and it continues right up to the present days. As the consequences and sufferings in silence, Rohingyas were again compelled to flee en block this time not to Bangladesh but to other alternate countries leaving behind the women, children and the elderly persons. By fishing boats, working as laborers as the travel-fees, they reach the coasts of Thailand, if they survive the seas and the attacks by the Burmese pursuing navies, Malaysia and other South-East-Asian Countries including Indonesia. Many perished in the seas and some are caught by the Burmese sea-patrolling Navies. Those arrested merely disappear with no trace whatsoever. Many Rohingyas are being detained in the Thailand’s prisons and others in the Burmese and Malaysian prisons. Malaysia is the nearest Muslim country, save Bangladesh, and for continuous survival in the run for life, Rohingyas ended up being “displaced and undocumented stateless persons” since the 80s. Detention by the authorities in Malaysia spared no single Rohingya men and women alike including the aged group and minors. The constructive engagement policy of the ASEAN may have benefited the ten states but it has irreparably harmed the citizens of the ASEAN grouping; the Rohingyas ,least to mention. The damages inflicted are beyond repair unless MIRACLE saves them.

ROHINGYAS AND UNHCR, K.L, MALAYSIA Untold stories of sufferings experienced by the Rohingyas finally caught the attention of the UNHCR, KL Liaison office in 1992. Registration exercises were carried out with cooperation of the Malaysian Red Crescent Society (MRCS) .It ceased after short while for the reason unknown. Again in the year 2002 Rohingya Human Rights activists convinced the UNHCR, KL office, to issue en mass Temporary Protection letters to the Rohingyas (TPs) ,see the enclosed. The temporary protection letters merely identifies the displaced person and weakly-worded APPEAL to the concerned authorities NOT TO SUBJECT THE HOLDERS OF SUCH LETTERS TO ARREST AND DEPORTATION. Currently there are more than fifteen thousand such TP letters-holding Rohingyas who are always in and out of the detention Camps in Malaysia. Their fundamental rights to education, healthcare, human rights, rights of the infants or minors are nowhere to be seriously discussed. The ironic mistake that the UNHCR, KL has allowed itself to be very GROSSLY INDECISIVE, INACCURATE, REPUGNANT by dividing the same Rohingyas with the same

WELFOUNDED FEAR into TWO groups; one with TP letters and the other RECOGNIZED REFUGEES. The burden thus falls on the UNHCR to DISPROVE THE WELFOUNDED FEAR of the Rohingyas back at home. These types of administrative limitations of discretion on the part of the UNHCR, KL is more harmful to the Rohingyas than the harms inflicted by the Burmese Junta, to some extent.

APPEAL AND PROPOSAL TO THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITIES FOR OFFSHORE HUMANITRARIAN RESCUE PROGRAMM The National Council for Rohingyas, an educational, Human Rights-based and research based organization has been tireless in finding a long-lasting solution for the Rohingyas by lobbying states that are capable of understanding the human sufferings of these hapless stateless Ethnic Rohingyas. Capable and prestigious country like Australia is one that has a vast land and the need for skilled and unskilled human resources for the national agriculture and, manufacturing sector and the services sectors. An appeal letter was written to the Australian Minister for Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs Minister The Hon.Gary Hardgrave MP in 2002 and he has expressed his concern , sympathy and empathy for the Rohingyas. Mere sympathy without actions is not sufficient in this case. In Malaysia Rohingyas have accumulated skills in several sectors such as manufacturing, agriculture, at home Rohingyas are agriculture-based landlords, and construction sectors apart from some professionals educated and trained in Malaysia and Burma itself. The age group of the displaced Rohingyas ranges from 20s to 50s with majority of them being MALES with exception to some accompanied and unaccompanied females, children and their dependants. Literacy rate is estimated to be 85% (Burmese+ English) and English is redeemable, 100% (Islamic Religious Literacy) and Burma is now at the level of 98% literacy rate nationwide. The vulnerability of the Ethnic Burmese Rohingya is very alarming that their fundamental human rights are not protected at all. As the virtual stateless ethnic group, it is felt that their genuine plight deserves attention from the international community without any delay. An offshore Rescue program seems to be the only option unless the UNHCR in KL changes its mind otherwise. As the long-dragging problem of ASIA, the Rohingya issue needs to be addressed and answered by the international communities very proactively in persuading any willing country to activate their OFFSHORE HUMANITARIAN RESCUE PROGRAMM or any other mode of rescue before we all are made to merely witness a human tragedy of displaced persons if cries and call for DESPERATE HELP is unheard or deliberately ignored. God Save Australia, God save the Rohingyas. Thank You.

Mr.Ghiyathudeen bin Maulana Abdul Salam Coordinator/Spokesperson

Majlis Masyarakat Rohingya 30th March 2005 Kuala Lumpur. Coordinator, mobile (017-3725661)/Office. 603-42974331, fax-603-42978331